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The fog and rain have cast a moody tone over the decorated streets and glittering houses leading up to Christmas day. In Wisco, this is far from ordinary winter weather, but I'm not complaining a bit. I've never been attached to classic or traditional when it comes to the holidays. I like shaking things up.

Not to mention these skies are the perfect complement to my Christmas cookie repertoire. Each of my three sweet picks this year features dark chocolate and espresso powder; no cookie cutters, no icing or food coloring here. These recipes come together quickly, making them perfect for that last-minute urge to bake up something scrumptious and pretty to share with friends and fam. Whether your holidays are a little offbeat or beautifully routine, there's always room for a little chocolate in that Christmas spread.

Vegan Dark Chocolate Espresso Truffles

The first recipe is one I've made three years running. It's vegan, gluten-free and grain-free, a total crowd pleaser with deep cocoa flavor that melts in your mouth as a hint of roasted espresso flavor lingers in the background. It just might be that one perfect bite of dessert you crave after a rich holiday meal. They're red wine's best friend and will make you some quick pals too when you gift them in a little tin tied with a bright red ribbon.

Ingredients

8 ounces dark chocolate (at least 70 percent cacao), chopped

1/4 cup organic unrefined coconut oil

3 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch of sea salt

1 tablespoon espresso powder

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, for rolling

Method

Melt chocolate on the stove over medium heat with oil and the water stirring constantly. Remove from hear and stir in vanilla, sea salt. Transfer to an 8-inch square baking dish, and refrigerate until mixture is set but still pliable, about 2 hours.

Using a 1-inch ice-cream scoop or regular metal spoon, scoop out 28 portions, using hands to roll into balls to make smooth. Roll in cocoa powder to create a swirled effect as shown. Refrigerate on sheet 10 minutes before serving. Truffles can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.

Coconut Pistachio Macaroons

The next recipe is a new one for me. It comes from Mark Bittman via New York Times Cooking and it's SO good. I love a classic macaroon, but these nuggets of joy step things up to a whole other level. The creamy, rich coconut cookie is studded with pistachios and then half-dipped in the same chocolate used to make the truffles above. Hide a few for yourself or you'll never even get a taste.

Ingredients

1 cup sugar

3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

½ cup chopped pistachios

Pinch salt

3 egg whites, lightly beaten until just foamy

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Mix in egg whites and vanilla with a rubber spatula or your hands until fully incorporated.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Wet your hands and grab small piles of the mixture (1 to 2 tablespoons each) packing into nuggets that hold together. Place on baking sheet about an inch apart. Bake until firm to the touch and lightly browning on edges, about 15 minutes.Cool cookies on a rack for at least 30 minutes . Dip cooled cookies halfway in dark chocolate truffle mixture (above) while chocolate is still warm and set on parchment to dry/harden. Macaroons keep well in a covered container for up to 3 days

Chunky Oat n' Cocoa Haystacks

The final cookie is just the right mix of naughty and nice. Sugary enough to win over the kids but virtuous enough (thanks to oats and dark chocolate) to justify having a second one. Gluten-free if you use GF Oats. A kiss of almond extract is my secret weapon here.

Ingredients

1 ⅓cups plus 1 tablespoon rolled oats

1cup sugar

2ounces unsalted butter

¼cup unsweetened cocoa powder

¼cup evaporated milk

Pinch salt

1teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

½cup finely grated coconut

Method

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spread rolled oats on a baking sheet and toast for 20 minutes, until slightly darker and toasty smelling. Remove from heat.

Line some free counter space with parchment or wax paper. In a saucepan, combine sugar, butter, cocoa powder, evaporated milk and salt and bring to a boil, stirring consistently. Remove from heat once boiling and stir in vanilla and almond extracts, oats and coconut.

Immediately drop the warm mixture by scant tablespoons onto parchment or wax paper to create little "haystacks." Allow to cool to room temperature and store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

But what finally drove me to sit down and write a post were these humble little muffins that emerged from my oven today as a result of some crazy ripe bananas wafting their sweet boozy potpourri cloud through the kitchen. I wanted to bake something to enjoy after a rich holiday meal or with Christmas morning coffee: a not-too-sweet almond flour pillow chock full of the good stuff: chocolate, banana and peanut butter. Obviously I had to test one to make sure they weren't poison, and it was love at first bite: the perfect balance of roasty banana and rich chocolate, with a background of vanilla and almond and a gooey peanut butter center to steal the show. Almond flour's texture is unbeatable when it comes to hearty baked goods like muffins and breads, I completely prefer it over wheat flour. The dense, moist crumb on these babies cries out for a glass of milk... and a second muffin.

Merry Christmas Eve Eve everyone. I hope you have the most wonderfilled and joyful holiday season. Remember to look around and breathe deeply. Say "mmm" as you savor all those special holiday dishes and "ahh" when you see the glow of Christmas lights. As we steep ourselves in family time and food, let's be grateful for and awed by LOVE and all of the ways it manifests itself in our lives - at Christmas and every day after.

Did you ever notice how many of your most beloved childhood foods taste better in your memory that in real life? It’s kind of sad and yet somehow fascinating; now that I eat mostly whole foods and try to steer clear of added artificial crap, those treats I adored as a child taste eerily fake and often leave a lingering plasticky taste in my mouth. Don’t get me wrong, I can get down on a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch or an ice cream sandwich from time to time, but as a general rule the edible foodlike substances of my youth have lost their luster.

Reese’s peanut butter cups fall into this category. I remember those commercials that would feature all the different ways to go about eating your Reese’s. My favorite one was to poke a perfect hole in the middle, eat that first and then nibble away at the grooved, rigid outer ring. Now when I eat a Reese’s, all I taste is a fistfight between salt and sugar with a hint of peanut butter flavor egging them on in the background (no pun intended). So when I saw a recipe for copycat Reese’s peanut butter eggs on Pinterest, I was all about making a revamped version of my old Easter basket fav.

These tasty nuggets of joy are made from just seven wholesome ingredients. The texture is freakishly similar to the store bought ones, but the taste is supremely better. Coated in bittersweet chocolate and scented lightly with vanilla and cinnamon, these actually “taste of what they are” which is mostly straight-up peanut butter. Coconut flour is the binder and thickener for the filling, maple syrup sweetens the deal just a touch. As long as you can form a semi-reasonable egg shape and refrain from licking your fingers every five minutes while coating these, you should be just as successful in making them as I was. Happy Easter. Have a wonderful weekend of renewal, reunion, and refreshment.

Ingredient note: Coconut flour is soft flour produced from dried coconut as a natural byproduct of coconut milk production. As my friend Elizabeth, who introduced me to this versatile, gluten-free flour, has pointed out, “it’s almost all fiber” and for this reason, it absorbs liquid like a sponge and cannot be substituted for AP flour in a 1:1 ratio. It’s best to use coconut flour in recipes that were created with this ingredient in mind, like this one or this one!

Coconut flour is an exceptionally good source of the essential micronutrient manganese. Manganese helps our bodies optimally utilize choline and biotin (found in eggs), vitamin C and thiamin. Manganese also supports a healthy skeletal and nervous system and promotes thyroid health.

Coconut flour can be found in most well-stocked grocery stores (Bob’s Red Mill has a version) as well as in the bulk section at many natural food stores (including the Milwaukee-area’s Outpost Natural Foods).

Combine the peanut butter, coconut flour, maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Mix well using an immersion blender, food processor, or a fork and a very strong arm. The filling should be similar to the texture of cookie dough. If it’s more runny than that, add a tiny bit more coconut flour.

With clean hands, shape the mixture into about 16 eggs (~ 1 Tbsp of filling per egg). Hint: make sure they’re tapered at the top and more rounded and wide at the bottom, this is the key to a convincing egg. :)

Place the “eggs” on a lined baking sheet and stick them in the freezer while you heat up the chocolate, at least 5 minutes.

Using a double boiler over simmering water, melt the chocolate chips and milk together until smooth and creamy. Remove chocolate from heat and retrieve the eggs from the freezer.

Roll each egg in the chocolate until covered and place them back on the lined baking sheet. (There is no right way to do this. You can use two forks, a spoon, or your fingers. It’s a bit tedious and you may have to put the eggs back into the freezer halfway through to prevent them from melting in their hot chocolate bath, but you’ll get through it and by George, it will be worth it.)

Stick the eggs back in the freezer to let the chocolate set for an hour or two, storing them there until ready to share.

Guaranteed to be a hit with bunnies, rabbits and even the occasional hare at your holiday gathering.